BeAble Capital
BeAble Capital is a Madrid-based deep-science venture capital (VC) firm that backs pre-seed and seed startups spun out of university and research-lab science. It calls the model Science Equity. Water is one slice: as of 2026 it has backed 2 water companies across 3 deals, both lab spin-outs in wastewater treatment and microplastic capture.
Compiled by Antoine Walter, (don't) Waste Water, from official filings and direct intelligence in Leviathan.
The take
BeAble Capital is one of the few European funds that treats raw university science as its dealflow rather than its garnish. It runs a model it brands Science Equity: find a breakthrough sitting in a Spanish lab, license the intellectual property (the patents behind it), and build a company around that science from scratch. BeAble does not wait for startups to come to it; it manufactures them out of research.
BeAble Capital started in 2008 as a technology-transfer shop run by Almudena Trigo and David López, and became a regulated fund manager in 2016. Its mandate is deep science across advanced materials, nanotechnology, photonics, biotech and energy, which is why water turns up almost by accident: the two water companies (don't) Waste Water tracks both arrived as lab spin-outs, not as water deals. In 2023 BeAble raised a 50 million euro second fund, backed by Spain's CDTI-Innvierte programme through the NextGenerationEU recovery money, the bank BBVA, and pension capital.
BeAble Capital's water bets read like the rest of its book: science first, sector second. One company captures microplastics with electrostatically charged filter granules; another cleans wastewater with aerobic granular sludge. Both are materials-and-biology problems that happen to land in water, which is the tell of a deep-science investor rather than a water specialist. Across more than 20 portfolio companies, water is a corner of the map, not the territory.
BeAble Capital is worth a newcomer's attention for one reason: it is a reminder that some of the most interesting water technology is funded by people who would never call themselves water investors. As of June 2026 BeAble is still writing first cheques into university spin-outs, from fusion energy to filtration. The bet to watch is whether its lab-to-company machine keeps surfacing water science that generalist funds walk past.
Water Commitment Score
Compiled from official filings, third-party records, and direct intelligence from investors and founders, in Leviathan · recomputed monthly · as of Jun 2026.
How they invest
Portfolio · 2 water companies
Frequently asked
- What does BeAble Capital invest in?
- BeAble Capital invests in pre-seed and seed deep-science startups built on university and research-lab intellectual property, across advanced materials, nanotechnology, photonics, biotechnology and energy. Its water investments, which (don't) Waste Water tracks, are a small slice: lab spin-outs in wastewater treatment and microplastic capture rather than water utilities.
- Is BeAble Capital a water fund?
- BeAble Capital is a deep-science fund, not a water-only fund. Water is one sector among many it backs through its Science Equity model. Within that slice it has backed 2 water companies across 3 deals, according to (don't) Waste Water's data, both university spin-outs rather than water-utility plays.
- Who runs BeAble Capital?
- BeAble Capital was co-founded by Almudena Trigo, its CEO and chair, who leads the firm alongside founding partners Roberto Ranera, Alberto Díaz and David López. Trigo is a molecular-biology PhD and telecommunications engineer who sits on the board of SpainCap, Spain's private-capital association.
- Where is BeAble Capital based?
- BeAble Capital is based in Madrid, Spain, and invests almost entirely in Spanish science, building companies out of the country's universities and research centres. It runs CNMV-registered funds, including a 50 million euro vehicle raised in 2023 with backing from Spain's CDTI-Innvierte programme and the bank BBVA.
- How big are BeAble Capital's funds?
- BeAble Capital manages more than 20 portfolio companies across its Science Equity funds, which include a 50 million euro fund registered in 2023, backed by Spain's CDTI-Innvierte programme through NextGenerationEU and BBVA, plus an earlier deep-tech vehicle. It writes early pre-seed and seed cheques into university spin-outs.